The Princess and the Dragoon

Once upon a time, princesses automatically married princes or other noblemen, as surely as knights rescued damsels in distress. Not any more -- not even British princesses. Last week, Buckingham Palace announced "with the greatest pleasure" the engagement of Queen Elizabeth's only daughter, Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise Windsor, 22, to Lieut. Mark Phillips, 24, a hand some commoner in the Queen's Dragoon Guards.

Anne had prepared Britons for the possibility of a nonroyal match from the time she grew into long-legged womanhood. "Princesses are getting a bit short on the [marriage] market," she once noted. "I'll soon be next, but they will have a job marrying me off to someone I don't want." Anne also had precedent going for her. Her aunt, Princess Margaret, now 42, made the big break in 1960, when she wed Antony Armstrong-Jones, an untitled photographer. Since then, three of the Queen's cousins, Princess Alexandra, the Duke of Kent and Prince Richard of Gloucester, have also chosen spouses outside the nobility.

Primrose Hue. Traditionalists, however, could take heart from the fact that Phillips is an uncommon commoner. His family is what the British refer to as "county"--people of comfortable means who have homes and stables in the counties and hold high business or professional positions, if they work at all. The Phillipses have a handsome 16th century house of Cotswold stone and primrose hue in Great Somerford, Wiltshire, about 80 miles west of London. Mark's grandfather was an equerry to King George VI. His father, Peter Phillips, is a director of T. Wall & Sons, a large produce firm that specializes in pork sausages and ice cream (and which, incidentally, is an official purveyor to the Queen). Mark attended Marlborough College, one of Britain's best public (meaning private) schools, before entering the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst. Though he was an all-round athlete at school, his favorite sport is the same as Anne's--horse-riding.

The couple first met during the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City, when Phillips was a reserve member of the British equestrian team. They continued to bump into each other at other equestrian events. For a while, Anne, who won a European riding championship in 1971, appeared smitten with another dashing horseman, Richard Meade, who gallantly rose to Anne's defense last year when some blackguard suggested that her riding ability was overrated. Anne later cheered both Phillips and Meade as they won gold medals at the Olympic Games in Munich.

No Romance. Sadly for lovers of fairy tales, it turns out that the two men were not really competing for the spirited princess's hand. London gossip has it that Meade was never a suitor but acted as a cover for Phillips. Anne, who inherits her father's fondness for playing games with the press, contributed to the confusion. As recently as March, Anne royally fibbed that there was no romance between her and the strapping soldier. In fact, they actually became engaged in mid-April; the official announcement was delayed until, according to protocol, Commonwealth leaders and the Archbishop of Canterbury had been duly informed.

Phillips, who had been posted with his regiment to West Germany, returned to Britain for the announcement. When he and his honey-blonde fiancee entertained newsmen at Buckingham Palace, the straight-backed cavalry officer confessed that he was "petrified" when he asked Prince Philip's permission for the marriage. Anne, who said the wedding would be some time in November, showed off her engagement ring. "It's pretty simple," she said. "A sapphire in the middle and a diamond on each side." After his car's faulty battery had been repaired by mechanics at Buckingham Palace, Mark set off to rejoin his regiment. The Dragoons may be heading next for Northern Ireland, but not likely with Mark. He is going to become an instructor at Sandhurst, with the rank of acting captain and a salary of $6,625 a year.

The couple should not lack for cash. The Queen, reputed to be one of the world's wealthiest women, will no doubt provide a dazzling dowry. In addition, Anne, as the fourth in line to the British crown, will get a huge increase in her state allowance upon her marriage --a point that gave Britain's Communist daily an excuse for its lese-majeste coverage of the engagement. While most of the British press ran streams of type (530 column inches in the Daily Express), the London Morning Star carried two curt sentences: "Princess Anne will get a -L-20,000 rise, to -L-35,000 a year [$87,500], when her marriage to Lieut. Mark Phillips, announced yesterday, takes place. It has not been decided where they will live."

Wherever the couple sets up house, Britons will be waiting to see if young Mark can bridle some of his bride's temperament. Though Anne can charm, she can also chafe. As one British court-watcher puts it: "She has imperious moods when that pendulous Windsor lower lip droops and the arrogance of centuries emerges." She has never enjoyed performing royal duties as much as her elder brother Prince Charles (who remains the world's most eligible royal single). She makes little attempt to disguise boredom. "I'm an expert on opening Kleenex factories and such," she once observed. Anne will still be expected to earn her salary with public appearances. Doubtless she will also find time to pursue such other interests as the movies, West End plays, skiing --and of course riding.

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